Chemicals used in automatic car washes are now available in highly concentrated formulas. However, the existing car wash equipment is designed to accommodate the conventional, less concentrated chemicals. The present invention addresses the problem of converting automatic car washing equipment from conventional car cleaning and waxing chemicals to highly concentrated car cleaning and waxing chemicals without substantially replacing existing equipment or making expensive and time consuming modifications to existing equipment.
Existing car wash systems now use conventional chemicals supplied in 55-gallon drums. The broad term "chemical" refers to detergents and other cleaning agents as well as to waxes, sealants and other conditioners. The chemicals are typically drawn out of the 55-gallon drum with a pump, commonly referred to as a "feed pump" or a "direct feed pump", and then injected into a water line through a injection valve or check valve. The chemicals are then injected into the overhead "spray arch" of the car wash where they are mixed with water just before the chemical/water mixture is being sprayed onto the vehicles. The dilution of the chemicals in the spray arch only is insufficient for highly concentrated chemicals now available and would result in substantial waste of the concentrated chemicals and rinsing problems. Therefore, some modification of the existing systems is required before they can employ the more concentrated chemicals.
Another method of drawing the chemicals out of the 55-gallon drum is to use an automated liquid level control proportioner commonly sold under the HYDROMINDER.TM. mark by Hydro Systems Company of Cincinnati, Ohio. Water from the main water supply flows through the HYDROMINDER.TM. valve and the venturi effect of the water flowing through the body of the proportioner draws the chemicals from the 55-gallon drum into the output stream. The output stream, which is a partially diluted solution of chemicals, is deposited into a stock solution tank before it is pumped into the "spray arch" where the solution is mixed again with water and applied to the vehicles. Thus, use of the HYDROMINDER.TM. systems results in dilution of the chemicals twice. First, the chemicals drawn through the HYDROMINDER.TM. body are mixed with water to make up the stock solution tank; second, the chemicals are diluted again when the stock solution is mixed with water in the spray arch. Even though the present use of the HYDROMINDER.TM. systems dilutes the chemicals twice before they are applied to the vehicles, the HYDROMINDER.TM. systems as currently used will still not provide sufficient dilution for the highly concentrated chemicals now available. Modification of car wash systems employing the HYDROMINDER.TM. valves is still required.
As noted above, the problem addressed by the present invention is how to retrofit or convert existing car wash facilities from using conventional detergents (supplied in 55-gallon drums) to highly concentrated detergents and waxes that may be in excess of ten times stronger or more concentrated than conventional chemicals. In essence, neither the conventional "direct feed pump" or HYDROMINDER.TM. systems discussed above are capable of properly diluting the concentrated chemicals that are now available. Further, car wash operators will be very reluctant to convert from conventional detergents to highly concentrated detergents if an excessive amount of new equipment or modification of existing equipment is required.
The proposed conversion from conventional chemicals provided in 55-gallon drums to highly concentrated chemicals provided in 5-gallon containers provides many ancillary benefits for car wash operations. First, the car wash operator will no longer be responsible for disposing of the 55-gallon drums which normally cannot be deposited in a normal trash bin. While 55-gallon drums are reusable, they are not recyclable.
Further, from the chemical manufacturer's point of view, to be able to supply concentrated chemicals in a 5-gallon container, which may include a plastic bag of chemicals enclosed in a protective cardboard box, is highly desirable. First, sales personnel or account representatives can carry the boxes of chemicals in the trunk of a sedan; a truck or van for delivering the chemicals to car wash operators is not required. Second, the account representatives can move, replace and install the smaller boxes of highly concentrated chemicals without assistance. In contrast, 55-gallon drums can weigh as much as 500 pounds which requires two or more people to move a 55-gallon drum full of chemicals. Workplace injuries as a result during the moving of heavy objects like a full 55-gallon drum can be avoided. Further, no special arrangements for the disposal of empty concentrate boxes or bags need to be made. The plastic bags held with the boxes can be recycled, as well as the cardboard box.
Thus, while the conversion from conventional car wash chemicals to highly concentrated chemicals provides benefits to both the chemical manufacturer and car wash operators, car wash operators will be reluctant to convert to the highly concentrated chemicals if a substantial amount of new equipment or modification to existing equipment is required in order to convert from the regular strength chemicals to the chemicals. The present invention specifically addresses this problem and provides a means for converting existing car wash operations from conventional chemicals to concentrated chemicals without an excessive amount of new equipment or modification to existing equipment.